Oxtail- nom nom nom

1/13/12

After a day of orientation and shopping, seven of us made reservations for dinner at this tiny restaurant that everybody has said is amazing. It was called Da Enso and has only maybe seven tables. When we showed up at the restaurant it turns out they recently changed their phone number and they didn’t have our name on the list… (So who knows where we actually made dinner reservations….)But luckily for us they were very accommodating and graciously gave us a table that was reserved for 9 if we were willing to eat in an hour (quick by Italian standards). We felt bad because it really threw off their perfected coordination-with a place and kitchen that small they have to have everything down to a science to be able to cook and serve all the meals at the same time. Regardless the dinner was absolutely delicious!!!! 

We had wine, homemade bread, and I ordered a meal of chicken and a tomato sauce. Melissa and Shannon ordered oxtail (yes, it’s exactly what it is called- the tail of an ox/cow)! People who recommended the restaurant said that we had to get oxtail, but I really didn’t think anyone would. I actually surprised myself and decided to try a bite- it was really good!! It has a different taste to it, but it is very similar to beef in texture. Everyone who tried it enjoyed it. Melissa realized as she was finishing her meal that the bone in the center was an actual vertebrae bone, which really freaked her out. Despite that, she still enjoyed it. Everyone loved their meal a lot and I’m sure we will go there again now that we have the correct telephone number for reservations! 

Here is a sample picture of oxtail- it is served as on the vertebrae bone as shown above

It is so difficult to have to switch my eating habits around. At school, six thirty is a late dinner for me. Here eight o’clock is early for dinner-barely anything is open or willing to serve customers before at least eight. The first night we were still jet lagged and tried to find dinner at 6pm and were laughed out of a few restaurants…  They usually have café and croissants in the morning, their largest meal at lunch around 1:30/2pm and then dinner at 9pm.

Its awesome though how inexpensive food is here. I haven’t paid more than 10 euro for dinner. We have even gone to nice places where we’ve ordered wine, bread, a meal, and water (you have to pay for water).  A large square portion of pizza with multiple toppings is only 1-2 euro- you would easily pay more than that for cut-by-the-slice pizza in any city in the US. Groceries are also really cheap, but they come in small portions so you end up going more often. Regardless, it’s still a lot healthier of food and cheaper than American grocery stores.